Ferenc Bene

Ferenc Bene (17 December 1944 – 27 February 2006) was a Hungarian footballer who played as a striker for Újpesti Dózsa and Hungary.

He was a member of the team that won the gold medal at the 1964 Summer Olympics, in which he was the top scorer of the tournament with 12 goals in just 5 matches. He is the sixth most prolific goalscorer in total matches in recorded history according to RSSSF with over 1425 goals scored in over 1480 matches, which results in a goal-per-match ratio of almost one. Bene was a successful striker for Újpesti Dózsa (303 goals in 418 matches) and the Hungary national team (36 goals in 76 matches). He was named Hungarian player of the year twice, in 1964 and in 1969.

Early career
Ferenc Bene was born on 17 December 1944 in Balatonújlak. He began to play football in 1958 in the youth ranks of MEDOSZ Marcali. Bene made his senior league debut for Dózsa in a fixture against Somogyszob in June 1959 at the tender age of only 14,5 years, scoring once. Just two months later, on August 1959, at the age of 14 years and 8 months, he scored a hat-trick in a league game against Siofok.

In September 1959, Bene scored the only goal for Somogy regional team in a youth tournament match against Baranya. After protests from opponents, the result was annulled on the basis that the then 14-year-old Bene was too young to play for a U-16 selection U16. He was later allowed to play for the county's junior team, but banned from playing for the senior club until his 16th birthday. For this reason, he played only for youth teams for the next 12 months, from September 1959 to September 1960.

Bene was then recruited by Kaposvár Kinizsi, a team from the third division, where he scored 16 goals in 16 matches, including 4 against Mazai Banyasz (4–0) and 6 against Szekszardi Petöfi (7–1).

Újpesti Dózsa
In 1961 the 17-year-old Bene was discovered by former Hungarian international István Avar, who recommended him to Újpest Dózsa. He then played with Újpest Dózsa for the next 17 years, from 1861 until 1978. In total, he scored 303 goals in 418 matches, thus being one of the main architects behind the team's dominance in the 1970s, as Dózsa won 8 Nemzeti Bajnokság I between 1969 and 1977-78, and also three Magyar Kupa in 1969, 1970, and 1974-75.

Bene was also crucial in helping Dózsa reach the semi-finals of the 1973–74 European Cup, which they lost to Gerd Müller's Bayern Munich. In the following year, in the round of 16 of the 1974–75 European Cup against Benfica, he scored a sensational goal: He kicked the ball out of the goalkeeper's hand and then held the ball in front of him for a long time before flicking to an open net with brilliant situational awareness. This was chosen as the most beautiful goal of the Cup round in Western Europe at the time.

For his efforts at Dózsa, Bene was named Hungarian Footballer of the Year in 1964 and 1969.

Later years
Leaving the club after the 1978 season, he continued to play for smaller Hungarian teams such as Volán SC (1978–79 and 1983–84) and he even enjoyed a brief spell in Finland playing for Sepsi-78 in 1981–82. He then played for Soroksári VOSE in 1983–84, at the age of 40, scoring 5 goals in 12 matches, and finally ended his career with Kecskeméti SC at the end of the 1984–85 season, having scored only 1 goal in 15 matches.

International career
Bene made his debut for the Hungary national team against Yugoslavia on 14 October 1962, at the age of 17 years 9 months 27 days. He scored his first international goal two caps later, on 19 October 1963, which was the opening goal of a 2–1 victory over East Germany in the round of 16 of the 1964 European Nations' Cup qualifying. He also scored in the quarter-finals against France, and in the tournament, Bene scored in the semi-finals against Spain, which was not enough to prevent a 1–2 defeat. However, Bene scored one more goal at the tournament in the third place play-off against Denmark, thus finishing as the tournament's joint-top scorer alongside fellow teammate Dezső Novák and Chus Pereda of Spain.

In 1963 and 1964, Bene played with both the Hungarian main team and the Hungarian Olympic team simultaneously, overlapping between the two sides and scoring at a prolific rate for both of them. In fact, he scored a brace in each of his first three appearances with the Olympic side, two in friendlies and the other in a 4–0 win over Sweden in the first leg of the 1964 Olympic semifinal round of qualifying, thus helping his side reach the final round of qualifying against Spain in which he scored a brace in both legs  as Hungary qualified for the 1964 Olympics. In the Olympic tournament, Bene played a crucial role in helping Hungary winning the gold medal, scoring twelve goals in five matches, including all six in the 6–0 thrashing of Morocco in the group stage, a four goal haul against United Arab Republic in the semifinals, and the winner against Czechoslovakia in the final. He is one of only four players who have scored two hat-tricks in Olympic football matches, the others being Vilhelm Wolfhagen, Antonín Janda, and Domingo Tarasconi.

He was a versatile attacking player, who played as a center forward in Dózsa. In the national team, however, he held the position of right winger because of Albert Flórián. He was a player with a strong, muscular build, fast starting speed, and a great goal-scoring instinct.

In the 1966 World Cup, Bene scored one goal in each of Hungary's three group stage matches against Portugal, Brazil, and Bulgaria, and then also scored in the quarterfinals, which Hungary lost 1–2 to the Soviet Union. With four goals, Bene was Hungary's top scorer in the World Cup.

On 1 May 1972, he was invited to play a match for a Europe XI against Hamburger SV, organized as a farewell game for Uwe Seeler, and Bene scored once in a 7–3 win.

Bene played his last international match against Czechoslovakia on 12 September 1979. In total, he obtained 76 caps and scored 36 goals.

Death
He died on 27 February 2006 in Budapest, after a lengthy treatment following a fall at the end of 2005. His son Ferenc Bene jr. is also a former player, currently working as a manager.

The football academy of Kaposvári Rákóczi FC bears his name. He also received A Magyar Érdemrend tisztikeresztje in 1994.

Goals for Hungary Olympic team

 * Hungary score listed first, score column indicates score after each Bene goal.

Goals for Hungary main team

 * Hungary score listed first, score column indicates score after each Bene goal.

Honours

 * Újpest
 * Nemzeti Bajnokság I (8): 1969, 1970, 1970-71, 1971-72, 1972-73, 1973-74, 1974-75, 1977-78
 * Magyar Kupa: 1969, 1970, 1974-75
 * Hungary
 * Olympic Games: 1964


 * Individual
 * UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament: 1964


 * Hungarian Footballer of the Year: 1964 and 1969


 * World XI: 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969


 * FUWO European Team of the Season: 1966


 * ADN Eastern European Footballer of the Season: 1966